Pennies from Heaven

"Every time it rains, it rains pennies from heaven

Don't you know each cloud contains pennies from heaven?

So when you hear it thunder, don't run under a tree,

'Cause there'll be pennies from heaven for you and me!"

Today, in my part of West Texas, we had a spontaneous cloudburst--which, in the heat of summer, that's a blessing-- and it had me thinking of this song :)

I honestly have no idea what the writer of this song was actually talking about when he wrote it. But I can tell you how I listen to it. To me, this song reminds me that the everyday things that we encounter in our lives on a day-to-day basis, come to us as gifts from God.

So today:
319. summer afternoon cloudbursts
320. the long bench next to the back window
321. Remembering with Mom, watching fireworks from a hospital bed that one year
322. mushroom omelet with fresh basil and cilantro from my window garden
323. successfully making GF angel food cake

What does that have to do with today's post? Well, nothing...except that this month's Gluten Free Ratio Rally challenge happens to be angel food cake...and you could possibly count the fact that this cake roll is round like pennies! :)

Ever since the month of crepe recipes, and these key lime crepes from Kelly & Pete Bronski, I've been wanting to try something like that. So this month, as my twist, I decided to make a Coconut & Lime Angel Food Cake Roll.

I've had pumpkin rolls at Thanksgiving and Christmas when I was growing up, from my great-grandmother's recipe. But until I started searching for ideas for this challenge, I never knew such a thing as angel food cake rolls existed.

Special thanks to Caleigh fromGluten Frea[k] for hosting us this month! Here's the whole list of bloggers for this challenge:
Adina | Gluten Free Travelette - Cacao Spice Angel Food Cake
Angela | Angela's Kitchen - Grilled Lemon Angel Food Cake with Lemon Curd and Berries
Aunt Mae | Honey From Flinty Rocks  -  Angel Food Cake with Lemon Glaze
Caleigh | Gluten Free[k] - Almond Angel Food Stars
Caneel | Mama Me Gluten Free - Angel Food Cake "Pudding" with Fresh Cherry Sauce
Charissa | Zest Bakery - Saffron Angel Food Cake
gretchen | kumquat - caramel macchiato angel food cake  
Jonathan | The Canary Files - Lavender Angel Food Cupcakes
Mary Fran | FrannyCakes - Gluten-free angel food cake with roasted cherries and earl grey 
Pete & Kelli | No Gluten, No Problem - Caramel Peach Angel Food Cake
TR | No One Likes Crumbley Cookies - Peach Angel Food Cake   

The ratio for the cake that I ended up using was 1 part flour: 3 parts egg whites: 1.3 parts liquid sweetener. This recipe is somewhat time consuming, but it's worth it! :)

**For this recipe, make the filling first (recipe at end of post), and then refrigerate it overnight.**

Angel Food Cake
Using this suggestion from Simply Sugar and Gluten Free, I put agave nectar in mine instead of white sugar. I like plain angel food cake by itself, so I left the actual "cake" part as is. You can make regular angel food cake by putting the batter into a Bundt or tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. 

12 oz. egg whites (from about 10-12 eggs)
4.8 oz. (1/2 c.) agave nectar
1.5 oz. white rice flour
1.5 oz. tapioca starch
1 oz. brown rice flour

Line a 10x15" jelly roll pan with parchment. Set aside.
Whisk together flours in a small bowl. Set aside. 

Put egg whites in a large mixing bowl and beat with whisk or egg white attachment on medium-high speed. When mixture begins to look opaque and "fluffy," slowly add agave nectar, allowing it to incorporate fully into egg mixture. Continue beating until soft peaks form (it still took mine about 20 minutes).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Stop the mixer, and sprinkle about 1/4 of the flour mixture over the egg batter. Gently fold in the flour with a spatula until fully dissolved. Continue with the remaining flour. You want to be gentle so that the egg whites do not deflate by vigorous stirring. 

Pour the batter onto the prepared pan, and use a spatula to spread it evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 min, or till cake springs back when you touch it with your finger.
Rest 10 min. in pan.

Loosen w/ spatula, then turn upside down on clean towel. Remove parchment paper.
Roll cake in towel lengthwise, and cool on cooling rack completely, about 1 hour.

Spread prepared filling evenly on cooled cake. Sprinkle entire cake with shredded coconut, and then carefully roll lengthwise.

Coconut Lime Filling
The filling is adapted from this recipe at No Gluten, No Problem. I added agave nectar and unsweetened shredded coconut to this filling. 

1 (10.5 oz.) can full-fat coconut milk (I use Thai Kitchen brand), stirred well
4.8 oz. (1/2 c.) agave nectar
2 egg yolks
1/4 c. lime juice
fresh lime zest from 3 limes
unsweetened shredded coconut

Whisk together the egg yolks in a medium saucepan until light-colored. Add other ingredients (except shredded coconut), and bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Let boil for about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool. Refrigerate overnight. Slice and serve!

(This recipe was also shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Allergy Free Wednesdays.)